The present invention relates to graphical user passwords for user devices, and more specifically, to graphical user passwords using an ordered sequence to provide a locked access point to prevent unauthorized personnel from using certain user devices or gaining access to secured areas.
Starting around 1999, a great many graphical password schemes have been proposed as alternatives to text-based password authentication. These have become commercially available and widespread initially on smartphones and tablets, and later on in general purpose computers.
These existing graphical password systems employed on smartphones and touchscreen work by presenting the user with a previously selected image and asking him to draw a previously recorded gesture over it, using the image as a reference point. For example, android based phones uses a 3×3 dot array image and the user traces a path as set by a predetermined password to unlock the phone. Windows based phones uses drawn gestures on an image to unlock the phone.
While existing graphical password systems, such as described above, provide security to the phones they are prone to smudge attacks. The constant reuse of the same password by a user will leave a trace of the password on the screen. This trace could be used by anyone to unlock the phone.